Fightnews.com

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

In a WBA light heavyweight eliminator, Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramírez (44-0, 30 KOs) of Mazatlán, Mexico, scored a one-sided fourth round KO over former WBA interim champion Dominic Boesel (32-3, 12 KOs) of Freyburg, Germany, on Saturday night at the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California. It was target practice as Ramirez dominated and finally dropped Boesel to end it. Time was 1:33. Ramirez is now the mandatory challenger for WBA champion Dmitry Bivol. Continue reading “Ramirez crushes Boesel in four”

By Rocky Morales at ringside

Kevin Gonzalez (25-0-1, 13KO), WBA #6 super bantamweight, went the distance in a winning effort against a very game Emanuel Rivera (19-3, 12KO). It was largely a very competitive back and forth Mexico vs Puerto Rico battle over ten rounds but with the Mexican, Gonzalez, doing slightly better. Judges scored it unanimously for Gonzales by scores of 97-93, 96-94 and 98-92.

Brandyn Lynch (11-1-1, 8KO) won a spirited battle over tough as nails Marcos Hernandez (15-6-2, 3KO) in an eight round middleweight bout. Lynch had to get up off the canvas, rally despite being a bloody mess, almost had Hernandez out on his feet at the end of the sixth round, but worked hard until the final bell to secure a unanimous decision victory. Judges scored it 76-75 (twice) and 77-74, all in favor of Lynch. This was a rematch of their 2021 fight that ended in a draw.

Former WBO Bamtamweight Champ, Marlon “The Maranding Nightmare” Tapales (36-3, 19KO) had an easy time with overmatched Jose Estrella (23-19-1, 16KO). With a vicious body shot, Estrella went down like a sack of potatoes and was counted out by the referee at 1:39 of the second round. The Filipino, Tapales, is the #1 ranked super bantamweight, and stays busy while he awaits his mandatory shot at IBF and WBA Unified Champ, Murodjon Alhmadliev. Continue reading “Charlo-Castano undercard results”

By Miguel Maravilla at ringside

Undefeated lightweight William “El Camaron” Zepeda (26-0, 23 KOs) of Mexico put in work against the always tough veteran and former world champion Rene “Gemelo” Alvarado (32-12, 21 KOs) of Managua, Nicaragua in the co-feature bout on DAZN co-feature bout at the Toyota Arena in Ontario, California. Starting out at a fast pace, Zepeda and Alvarado exchanged as neither took a step back, letting their hands go.

Zepeda had his hands full in going the distance ten rounds for the unanimous decision victory. Continue reading “Zepeda defeats Alvarado; Scrappy, Akitsugi win”

In an upset, cruiserweight Armend Xhoxhaj (14-2, 7 KOs) took a ten round split decision against previously unbeaten Roman Fress (15-1, 9 KOs) on Saturday night on the lake stage in Elbauenpark, Magdeburg, Germany. Xhoxhaj’s pressure was too much for WBO #8, IBF #8, WBA #10 Fress to deal with. Scores were 98-92, 96-94 for Xhoxhaj, 96-94 for Fress.

Former light heavyweight world title challenger Adam Deines (21-2-1, 12 KOs) knocked out Norbert Dabrowski (24-10-2, 11 KOs) in the eighth round. Deines dropped Dabrowski twice to end it. Time was 2:25.

In an important heavyweight confrontation, WBA #9, WBC #15, IBF #15 Martin Bakole (18-1, 13 KOs) put a ten round beat down on previously undefeated IBF #5, WBC #9, WBA #13 heavyweight Tony Yoka (11-1, 9 KOs) on Saturday night at Accor Arena in Paris. The 277lb Bakole bullied the 241lb Yoka and dropped him in round one. Bakole continued to walk down, batter and bust up Yoka. Yoka went down again in round five, then mostly stayed out of range for the rest of the fight. Scores were 96-92, 95-93, 94-94!!!

In an eight-round lightweight contest, two-time French Olympian and 2016 Olympic silver medalist Sofiane Oumiha (2-0, 1 KO) outpointed previously unbeaten Mevy Boufoudi (8-1, 3 KOs) in a lightweight contest.

Unbeaten lightweight Christ “Little T” Esabe (12-0, 3 KOs) outscored Sander Diaz (13-9-1, 9 KOs) in an eight-rounder.

Lightweight Victor Yoka, younger brother of heavyweight Tony Yoka, won his professional debut by first round KO over over Gurami Kurtanidze (4-15-5, 1 KO).

Manny Pacquiao Jr., son of ring legend Manny Pacquiao, won his second amateur bout via three-round decision on Thursday night in Los Angeles.

PPV (Postponed)
Floyd Mayweather vs. Don Moore (exhibition)

ESPN+ (3PM ET, Noon PT)
Tony Yoka vs. Martin Bakole (heavyweight)

DAZN (8PM ET, 5PM PT)
Zurdo Ramirez vs. Dominic Boesel (light heavyweight)

SHOWTIME (9PM ET, 6PM PT)
Jermell Charlo vs. Brian Castaño (jr middleweight)
Jaron Ennis vs. Custio Clayton (welterweight)

FITE (9PM ET, 6PM PT)
Sergey Kovalev vs. Tervel Pulev (cruiserweight)

By Bob Caico

Felix Tuto Zabala, Jr of All Star Boxing held a six-bout card at Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino in Niagara Falls, NY on Friday night.

A large crowd witnessed local favorite Wilfredo “El Bravo” Flores of nearby Dunkirk, NY gain the vacant WBA Fedecentro lightweight belt with a unanimous 10-round decision over Victor Betancourt, Jr of Mexico. Scores were 99-91, 98-92, 97-93.

Flores raised his record to 10-0-1, 5 KOs, while Betancourt drops to 27-5, 14 KOs. Continue reading “Flores remains unbeaten”

By Brad Snyder-The Undercard
Photos by Bob Ryder

Friday night, The Soundboard at Motor City Casino & Hotel in Detroit and Carlos Llinas put on a card that most will remember for a long time. The night had a special presentation by the WBC. Jackie Kallen, The First Lady of Boxing, had the honor of presenting Tommy “The Hitman” Hearns with a one of a kind commemorative Four Kings belt, honoring his unique time in boxing history. The belt represented what most boxing historians argue was when boxing was at its best. Continue reading “Night of Knockouts XXI Results”

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

IBF #2, WBA #3 middleweight Michael Zerafa (30-4,19 KOs) says he has been offered a bout with former WBO super welterweight champion Jaime Munguia (39-0, 31 KOs) and he’s confident he can defeat the unbeaten Mexican.

“If it was up to me I’d jump on a plane tonight and fight him,” Zerafa told Wide World of Sports. “I’m keen for the Munguia fight. I believe I can beat him, I’ve seen him a few times, he fought a fellow Aussie in Dennis Hogan (in 2019), and I thought Hogan won that fight. Continue reading “Zerafa: I can beat Munguia”

Courtesy Jim Jenkins, Sacramento Bee

Sacramento may yet lack a boxing marquee main-eventer of glory years past, but Malikai Johnson (9-0-1) is blossoming into a candidate.

The homespun lightweight didn’t have the fiercest competition in front of him Friday night but dominated as expected with a fourth-round knockout of journeyman Pablo Batres (10-22-1) of Mexico in their feature match at the DoubleTree Hotel. Continue reading “Johnson Rolls On”

Emmanuel “Salserito” Rodriguez 118 vs. Juan Gabriel Medina 115.5
(WBA-NABA gold bantamweight title)

Andy Dominguez 108.5 vs. Edwin Reyes 108
Anthony Johns 117 vs. Gilberto Duran 118
Brian Ceballo 158 vs. Gerald Sherrell 155
Jose Nieves 122.5 vs. David Ashley 116
John Leonardo 125 vs. Jostin Ortiz Maysonet 126.5
Dave Roman Curiel 146.5 vs. Margarito Hernandez 145.5
Kahshad Elliott 151.5 vs. Tray Martin 153.5
Robert Terry 155.5 vs. Evincii Dixon 155
Gian Garrido 166 vs. Derrick Vann 170

Venue: The Robert Treat Hotel, Newark, N.J.
Promoter: Rising Star Promotions
TV: bxngtv.com

Sergey Kovalev 196.5 vs. Tervel Pulev 197.5

Kubrat Pulev 248.5 vs. Jerry Forrest 233
Evan Holyfield 153 vs. Jurmain McDonald 153.5
Emiliano Vargas 133.5 vs. Mark Salgado 133.5
Fernando Vargas Jr. 151.5 vs. Terrance Jarmon 148
Amado Vargas 130.5 vs. Anel Dudo 128.5

Venue: The Forum, Inglewood, California
Promoter: Triller Fight Club
TV: FITE

Jermell Charlo 152.8 vs. Brian Castaño 153.8
(Undisputed WBC/WBA/IBF/WBO super welterweight title)

Jaron Ennis 146.2 vs. Custio Clayton 146.6

Venue: Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif.
Promoter: TGB Boxing
TV: Showtime

Gilberto Ramirez 174.8 vs. Dominic Boesel 174.2
(WBA light heavyweight eliminator)

William Zepeda 134.4 vs. Rene Alvarado 134.6
John Ramirez 114.6 vs. Jan Salvatierra 114.6
Katsuma Akitsugi 124.6 vs. Jose Gonzalez 125.8

Venue: Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
Promoter: Golden Boy
TV: DAZN

In a huge upset, 37-year-old former WBA super middleweight champion Giovanni De Carolis (31-10-1, 15 KOs) scored a spectacular fifth round KO over previously unbeaten IBF #8, WBO #9 rated Daniele Scardina (20-1, 16 KOs) on Friday night at the Allianz Cloud in Milan, Italy. De Carolis dropped Scardina hard in round four. The referee totally botched the knockdown, giving the reeling Scardina extra time. No matter, De Carolis rushed out in round five to floor Scardina again ending it.

Saturday’s PPV exhibition between Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather and ‘Dangerous’ Don Moore is off due to the death of United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan who passed away today at age 73. To mourn the former leader, the country is suspending work in ministries, departments, federal and local institutions, and the private sector for three days.

Official announcement:

GLOBAL TITANS DUBAI POSTPONED

We are deeply saddened by the announcement of the recent passing of UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Due to the passing, the United Arab Emirates will be observing an official period of mourning for the next 40 days.

Therefore, the Global Titans Dubai event, which was scheduled to take place on May 14th at the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, has been postponed until further notice. A new date will be announced soon.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and reassure fans that this spectacular event will be staged in the future.

“It’s time to hang up my gloves,” former WBA/IBF super lightweight champion world champion Amir Khan announced today on social media. “I feel blessed to have had such an amazing career that has spanned over 27 years. I want to say a heartfelt thanks and to the incredible teams I have worked with and to my family, friends and fans for the love and support they have shown me.”

Khan, 35, ends with a record of 34-6 with 21 KOs. He lost his final fight earlier this year against archrival Kell Brook, who also recently retired.

Wilfredo “El Bravo Vega” Flores 135 vs. Victor Betancourt Jr 135
(WBA Fedecentro lightweight title)

Anthony “Princesa” Olascagua 112 vs. Gustavo “Smiley” Perez 112
Alexander Castellano 122 vs. Vietz “King Cobra” Yang 122
Mikiah Kreps 118.8 vs. Kedra “Chico” Bradley 117
Gerffred “The Authentic” Ngayot 135 vs. Juan Carlos Montañez 136
Anthony “Pretty Boy” Bizzaro 145 vs. Chris Ortiz 143.5

Venue: Seneca Resort & Casino in Niagara Falls, NY
Promoter: All Star Boxing
TV: ESPN Knockout (Latin America)
TONIGHT

Roman Fress 199.5 vs. Armend Xhoxhaj 199.7
(WBO Inter-Continental cruiserweight title)

Adam Deines 174.8 vs. Norbert Dabrowski 174.8
(WBO European light heavyweight title)

Tim Vößing 197.3 vs. Maximilian Schnell 196.7
Tom Dzemski 174.8 vs. Tomas Adamek 173.5
Robin Rehse 159.8 vs. Kristian Dzurnak 154.3
Marlon Dzemski 144.4 vs. Jan Kafka 144.2
Artur Reis 168.2 vs. Filipe Da Silva 163.8
Umut Camkiran 253.3 vs. Lukas Wacker 226.2
Paul Wall 153.7 vs. Morgan Toselli 152.6
Hamsat Shadalov 134.7 vs. Mike Juric 132.7

Venue: Seebühne in Elbauen Park, Magdeburg, Germany
Promoter: SES Boxing
TV: MDR (Germany)

By Ray Wheatley – World of Boxing

Two-time world champion Billy “The Kid” Dib spoke to Fightnews.com® about winning the IBF featherweight crown in 2011, still being rated as a lightweight in 2022, and calling out undisputed champion George” Ferocious “ Kambosos.

In 2011 you performed at your best to defeat tough Mexican Jorge Lacierva to win a clear twelve round decision to capture the IBF featherweight crown. Was that a dream come true to be IBF world champion?

It certainly was a dream come true. I had worked so hard for more than half of my life to turn my dream into a reality. Even though I had captured the IBO super featherweight championship a few years earlier, winning the IBF world featherweight championship cemented my legacy as a true world champion and that was special to me. It also came against a solid, rugged and experienced opponent in Lacierva so it’s something that I will always be proud of. Continue reading “Q&A: Billy “The Kid” Dib”

Courtesy Jim Jenkins, Sacramento Bee

BOXING
Malikai Johnson 138 vs. Pablo Bates 140
Anthony Hernandez 173 vs. Alejandro Fugon 170
Kenneth Lopez 165.5 vs. Andrew Garcia 165
Kevin Montano 130 vs. Corben Page 130
Cain Sandoval 144 vs. David Mitner 147
Luis Chavez 145 vs. Juan Moreno 144
Irving Xilohua 121 vs. Olaf Soto 122
Lizette Lopez 123.5 vs. Neveah Martinez 125.5

MMA
Salvador Martinez 186 vs. Raheem Gilliam 186

Venue: Sacramento DoubleTree Hotel
Date: Friday, May 13, 7:30 p.m.
Promoter: Nasser Niavaroni

Undefeated super welterweight Callum Walsh (3-0, 3 KOs) demolished Luis ‘The Sniper’ Garcia (3-1, 1 KO in the first round on Thursday night at the Quiet Cannon located at the Montebello Country Club in Montebello, California. Walsh dropped Garcia twice, to notch his third straight first round KO. Time was 1:48.

Unbeaten featherweight Omar Trinidad (8-0-1, 6 KOs) stopped Andrew Strode (6-2, 1 KO) at 1:10 of round three. Referee’s stoppage.

Unbeaten super lightweight Ernesto Mercado (6-0, 6 KOs) blitzed Jose Zaragoza (8-5-1, 2 KOs), getting a referee’s stoppage at 1:07 of round two.

Cruiserweight Marco Deckmann, (9-1, 7 KOs) outpointed Jasper McCargo, (4-3-2, 2 KOs) over six rounds. Deckmann dropped McCargo in round four, but was deducted a point for hitting McCargo behind the head while he was on the deck. Scores were 59-53 3x.

Former world champion Angel “Tito” Acosta (23-3-1, 22 KOs) obliterated Janiel Rivera (18-9-3, 11 KOs) in just 79 seconds of a super flyweight fight on Thursday night at the Fantasy Spring Resort Casino in Indio, California. Acosta rocked Rivera, then unloaded until the referee waved it off. Impressive win.

“I always train well for every fight, we knew Janiel was going to be a strong fighter and I didn’t want to under prepare for this fight,” said Acosta. “I saw an opportunity to end the fight early and I took it. I had a great camp with Joel Diaz and I feel he got me ready for this. Naturally we trained to go the distance, but fortunately we ended it early and got a great victory. We want to go back to the gym train and look for another world championship shot, hopefully Julio Cesar Martinez or McWilliams Arroyo.” Continue reading “Acosta destroys Rivera in one”

Unified WBC, WBA, and IBF 154-pound world champion Jermell Charlo and WBO 154-pound world champion Brian Castaño received enthusiastic and fervent support from their respective fanbases at a heated and boisterous final press conference on Thursday before they meet in a  rematch for undisputed status at 154 pounds this Saturday on Showtime from Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif. The fighters did not face off.

Jermell Charlo: “Knocking people out is what the f*** I do. That’s what I’m known for.”

Brian Castaño: “I could care less if he wants to knock me out. Let’s go out there and see if he can withstand my punishment for 12 rounds.” Continue reading “Charlo-Castaño II Final Press Conference”